The People's Republic of China statistical method

The only statistical law in China was adopted at the third meeting of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National People's Congress on December 8, 1983, amended at the 19th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth National People's Congress on May 15, 1996, and again at the 9th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eleventh National People's Congress on June 27, 2009. It came into force on January 1, 2010. In order to scientifically and effectively organize statistical work, ensure the authenticity, accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of statistical data, play the important role of statistics in understanding national conditions and strength, serving economic and social development, and promoting the development of socialist modernization construction, this law is formulated. This law applies to statistical activities organized and implemented by people's governments at all levels, statistical agencies of people's governments at or above the county level, and relevant departments. The full text consists of seven chapters and fifty articles.

Chapter 1 General Provisions Article 1 In order to scientifically and effectively organize statistical work, ensure the authenticity, accuracy, completeness, and timeliness of statistical data, give full play to the important role of statistics in understanding national conditions and strength, serving economic and social development, and promoting the development of socialist modernization construction, this Law is formulated. Article 2: This Law applies to statistical activities organized and implemented by people's governments at all levels, statistical agencies of people's governments at or above the county level, and relevant departments. The basic task of statistics is to conduct statistical investigations and analysis of economic and social development, provide statistical data and consulting opinions, and implement statistical supervision. Article 3: The state shall establish a centralized and unified statistical system, and implement a statistical management system with unified leadership and hierarchical responsibility. Article 4: The State Council, local people's governments at all levels, and relevant departments shall strengthen the organizational leadership of statistical work and provide necessary guarantees for statistical work. Article 5: The state strengthens statistical scientific research, improves a scientific statistical indicator system, continuously improves statistical survey methods, and enhances the scientificity of statistics. The country is systematically strengthening the construction of statistical informatization, promoting the modernization of statistical information collection, processing, transmission, sharing, storage technology, and statistical database system. Article 6: Statistical institutions and personnel shall independently exercise their powers of statistical investigation, statistical reporting, and statistical supervision in accordance with the provisions of this Law, and shall not be infringed upon. Local people's governments at all levels, government statistical agencies and relevant departments, as well as responsible persons of various units, shall not modify statistical data collected and organized by statistical agencies and personnel in accordance with the law on their own, shall not demand statistical agencies, statistical personnel and other institutions and personnel to falsify or tamper with statistical data in any way, and shall not retaliate against statistical personnel who perform their duties in accordance with the law or refuse or resist illegal statistical activities. Article 7: State organs, enterprises, institutions, and other organizations, as well as individual industrial and commercial households and individuals, and other statistical survey objects, must provide truthful, accurate, complete, and timely information required for statistical surveys in accordance with this Law and relevant national regulations. They shall not provide untrue or incomplete statistical information, and shall not delay or refuse to report statistical information. Article 8: Statistical work shall be subject to public supervision. Any unit or individual has the right to report illegal activities such as falsification in statistics. Units and individuals who have made contributions in reporting should be commended and rewarded. Article 9: Statistical agencies and personnel shall keep confidential any state secrets, trade secrets, and personal information they become aware of during statistical work. Article 10: No unit or individual shall use false statistical data to obtain honorary titles, material benefits, or job promotions.

Chapter 2 Statistical Survey Management Article 11 Statistical survey projects include national statistical survey projects, departmental statistical survey projects, and local statistical survey projects. The national statistical survey project refers to the statistical survey project of the basic situation nationwide. Departmental statistical survey projects refer to professional statistical survey projects of relevant departments of the State Council. Local statistical survey projects refer to local statistical survey projects of local people's governments and their departments at or above the county level. National statistical survey projects, departmental statistical survey projects, and local statistical survey projects should have clear division of labor, be interconnected, and not duplicated. Article 12: National statistical survey projects shall be formulated by the National Bureau of Statistics or jointly formulated by the National Bureau of Statistics and relevant departments of the State Council, and reported to the State Council for the record; Major national statistical survey projects shall be submitted to the State Council for approval. Departmental statistical survey projects are formulated by relevant departments of the State Council. If the statistical survey object belongs to the jurisdiction system of this department, it shall be reported to the National Bureau of Statistics for filing; If the survey objects exceed the jurisdiction of the department, they shall be submitted to the National Bureau of Statistics for approval. Local statistical survey projects are formulated separately or jointly by statistical agencies and relevant departments of local people's governments at or above the county level. Among them, those formulated separately by the statistical agencies of provincial people's governments or jointly formulated with relevant departments shall be submitted to the National Bureau of Statistics for approval; If formulated separately by the statistical agencies of the people's governments below the provincial level or jointly formulated with relevant departments, it shall be submitted to the statistical agencies of the provincial people's governments for approval; Formulated by relevant departments of local people's governments at or above the county level, and submitted to the statistical agency of the local people's government for approval. Article 13: The approval authority for statistical survey projects shall review the necessity, feasibility, and scientificity of the survey projects, make a written decision to approve those that meet the statutory conditions, and publish it; For those that do not meet the legal requirements, a written decision shall be made not to approve and the reasons shall be explained. Article 14: When formulating statistical survey projects, the statistical survey system for the project shall be formulated at the same time, and shall be submitted for approval or filing in accordance with the provisions of Article 12 of this Law. The statistical survey system should provide regulations on the purpose, content, methods, subjects, organizational methods, survey format, and submission and publication of statistical data. Statistical surveys should be organized and implemented in accordance with the statistical survey system. The content of changing the statistical survey system shall be approved by the original approval authority or filed with the original filing authority. Article 15: Statistical survey forms shall indicate the form number, the issuing authority, the approval or filing number, the validity period, and other symbols. Statistical survey respondents have the right to refuse to fill out statistical survey forms that do not indicate the symbols specified in the preceding paragraph or have exceeded their validity period; Statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level shall be ordered to cease relevant statistical investigation activities in accordance with the law. Article 16: The collection and organization of statistical data shall be based on periodic surveys, with regular sampling surveys as the main body. Comprehensive surveys, key surveys, and other methods shall be comprehensively used, and administrative records and other data shall be fully utilized. The major national census is under the unified leadership of the State Council, and the State Council and local people's governments organize statistical agencies and relevant departments to jointly implement it. Article 17: The state shall establish unified statistical standards to ensure the standardization of the meaning of indicators, calculation methods, classification catalogs, survey forms, and statistical codes used in statistical investigations. National statistical standards are formulated by the National Bureau of Statistics or jointly formulated by the National Bureau of Statistics and the standardization department of the State Council. Relevant departments of the State Council may formulate supplementary departmental statistical standards and submit them to the National Bureau of Statistics for approval. Departmental statistical standards shall not conflict with national statistical standards. Article 18: Statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level may promote the use of computer networks to submit statistical data among survey subjects as needed for statistical tasks. Article 19: People's governments at or above the county level shall include the funds required for statistical work in their fiscal budgets. The funds required for the major national census shall be jointly borne by the State Council and local people's governments, included in the corresponding annual financial budget, disbursed on time, and ensured to be in place.

Chapter 3 Management and Publication of Statistical Data Article 20: Statistical agencies and relevant departments of people's governments at or above the county level, as well as township and town people's governments, shall establish a system for the preservation and management of statistical data in accordance with relevant national regulations, and establish a sound mechanism for sharing statistical information. Article 21: State organs, enterprises, institutions, and other organizations that are subject to statistical investigations shall establish original records and statistical ledgers in accordance with relevant national regulations, and establish and improve management systems for the review, signing, handover, and archiving of statistical data. The personnel who review and sign statistical data shall be responsible for the authenticity, accuracy, and completeness of the statistical data they review and sign. Article 22: Relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall promptly provide the statistical agencies of the people's governments at the same level with the administrative record data required for statistics, as well as the financial data, fiscal data, and other data required for national economic accounting. They shall also submit the relevant data obtained from organizing and implementing statistical investigations to the statistical agencies of the people's governments at the same level in a timely manner in accordance with the provisions of the statistical investigation system. Statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level shall promptly provide relevant statistical data to the relevant departments of the people's governments at the same level. Article 23: Statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level shall regularly publish statistical data in accordance with relevant national regulations. National statistical data shall be based on the data published by the National Bureau of Statistics. Article 24: The statistical data obtained through statistical investigations by relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall be published by their respective departments in accordance with relevant national regulations. Article 25: Information obtained from statistical surveys that can identify or infer the identity of a single statistical survey subject shall not be provided or disclosed to the public by any unit or individual, and shall not be used for purposes other than statistics. Article 26: Statistical agencies and relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall timely disclose statistical data obtained from statistical investigations, except for those that should be kept confidential according to law, for public inquiry.

Chapter 4 Statistical Institutions and Statisticians Article 27: The State Council establishes the National Bureau of Statistics to organize, lead, and coordinate statistical work nationwide in accordance with the law. The National Bureau of Statistics establishes dispatched survey agencies according to work needs to undertake statistical surveys and other tasks assigned by the National Bureau of Statistics. Local people's governments at or above the county level shall establish independent statistical institutions, and township and town people's governments shall set up statistical work positions, equip full-time or part-time statistical personnel, manage and carry out statistical work in accordance with the law, and implement statistical investigations. Article 28 Relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall establish statistical institutions or appoint statistical personnel in relevant institutions according to the needs of statistical tasks, and designate statistical responsible persons to organize and manage statistical work within the scope of their responsibilities in accordance with the law, carry out statistical investigations, and be guided by the statistical institutions of the people's governments at the same level in statistical business. Article 29: Statistical institutions and personnel shall perform their duties in accordance with the law, truthfully collect and submit statistical data, and shall not forge or tamper with statistical data. They shall not request any unit or individual to provide untrue statistical data in any way, and shall not engage in any other acts that violate the provisions of this Law. Statisticians should adhere to seeking truth from facts, abide by professional ethics, and be responsible for the consistency between the statistical data they are responsible for collecting, reviewing, and inputting and the statistical data submitted by the survey subjects. Article 30: When conducting statistical surveys, statisticians have the right to ask relevant personnel about issues related to statistics, require them to truthfully provide relevant information and data, and correct untrue and inaccurate information. When conducting statistical surveys, statisticians shall present work credentials issued by the statistical agencies or relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level; If not presented, the survey subjects have the right to refuse the investigation. Article 31: The state implements a qualification examination and evaluation system for statistical professional and technical positions, improves the professional quality of statistical personnel, and ensures the stability of the statistical team. Statisticians should possess professional knowledge and skills that are appropriate for the statistical work they are engaged in. Statistical agencies and relevant departments of people's governments at or above the county level shall strengthen professional training and ethics education for statistical personnel.

Chapter 5 Supervision and Inspection Article 32: The people's governments at or above the county level and their supervisory organs shall supervise the implementation of this Law by the people's governments at lower levels, the statistical agencies of the people's governments at the same level, and relevant departments. Article 33: The National Bureau of Statistics shall organize and manage the supervision and inspection of national statistical work, and investigate and punish major statistical violations. Statistical agencies of local people's governments at or above the county level shall investigate and punish statistical violations that occur within their administrative regions in accordance with the law. However, any statistical violations that occur during the statistical survey activities organized and implemented by the survey agencies dispatched by the National Bureau of Statistics shall be investigated and dealt with by the survey agencies responsible for organizing and implementing the statistical survey. If there are other provisions in laws and administrative regulations regarding the investigation and punishment of statistical violations by relevant departments, those provisions shall prevail. Article 34: Relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall actively assist the statistical agencies of the people's governments at the same level in investigating and punishing statistical violations, and promptly transfer relevant materials on statistical violations to the statistical agencies of the people's governments at the same level. Article 35: When investigating illegal statistical activities or verifying statistical data, statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level have the right to take the following measures: (1) issue statistical inspection inquiry letters to inquire about relevant matters from the inspection objects; （2） Request the inspection object to provide relevant original records and vouchers, statistical ledgers, statistical investigation forms, accounting information, and other relevant certificates and materials; （3） Inquire with relevant personnel about matters related to inspection; （4） Enter the business premises and statistical data processing information system of the inspection object for inspection and verification; （5） Approved by the head of this institution, register and preserve the original records and vouchers, statistical ledgers, statistical survey forms, accounting information, and other relevant certificates and materials related to the inspection object; （6） Record, audio, video, photograph, and reproduce information and materials related to the inspection items. When the statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level conduct supervision and inspection, the number of supervision and inspection personnel shall not be less than two, and they shall present their law enforcement credentials; Units and individuals concerned have the right to refuse inspection if not presented. Article 36: When the statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level perform their supervisory and inspection duties, relevant units and individuals shall truthfully report the situation, provide relevant certificates and materials, and shall not refuse or obstruct inspections. They shall not transfer, conceal, tamper with, or destroy original records and vouchers, statistical ledgers, statistical investigation forms, accounting materials, and other relevant certificates and materials.

Chapter 6 Legal Liability Article 37: If the person in charge of a local people's government, government statistical agency, or relevant department or unit commits any of the following acts, they shall be punished by the appointment and removal authority or the supervisory authority in accordance with the law, and shall be notified by the statistical agency of the people's government at or above the county level: (1) modifying statistical data or fabricating false statistical data on their own; （2） Requesting statistical agencies, statisticians, or other organizations or personnel to forge or tamper with statistical data; （3） Retaliating against statisticians who perform their duties in accordance with the law or refuse or resist illegal statistical activities; （4） Neglecting serious statistical violations that occur in the local area, department, or unit. Article 38: If the statistical agencies or relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level engage in any of the following behaviors during the organization and implementation of statistical survey activities, the people's governments at the same level, the statistical agencies of the higher-level people's governments, or the statistical agencies of the people's governments at the same level shall order them to make corrections and issue a notice; The directly responsible supervisors and other directly responsible personnel shall be punished by the appointment and removal authority or the supervisory authority in accordance with the law: (1) Organizing and implementing statistical investigations without approval; （2） Unauthorized changes to the content of the statistical survey system; （3） Falsifying or tampering with statistical data; （4） Requesting statistical survey subjects or other institutions or personnel to provide untrue statistical data; （5） Failure to submit relevant information in accordance with the regulations of the statistical survey system. Statisticians who engage in any of the behaviors listed in the third to fifth items of the preceding paragraph shall be ordered to rectify and given disciplinary action in accordance with the law. Article 39: If the statistical agencies or relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level commit any of the following acts, the directly responsible supervisors and other directly responsible personnel shall be punished by the appointment and removal organs or supervisory organs in accordance with the law: (1) illegally publishing statistical data; （2） Disclosing trade secrets or personal information of the subject of statistical investigation, or providing or leaking information obtained during statistical investigation that can identify or infer the identity of a single statistical investigation subject; （3） Violating relevant national regulations and causing damage or loss of statistical data. Statisticians who engage in any of the behaviors listed in the preceding paragraph shall be punished in accordance with the law. Article 40: Statistical institutions and personnel who disclose state secrets shall be held legally responsible in accordance with the law. Article 41: If a state organ, enterprise, institution, or other organization that is the subject of statistical investigation commits any of the following acts, the statistical institution of the people's government at or above the county level shall order it to rectify, give a warning, and may issue a notice; If the directly responsible supervisors and other directly responsible personnel belong to state personnel, they shall be punished by the appointment and removal authority or the supervisory authority in accordance with the law: (1) Refusing to provide statistical data or failing to provide statistical data on time after being urged to report; （2） Providing untrue or incomplete statistical data; （3） Refusing to respond or providing inaccurate responses to statistical inspection queries; （4） Refusing or obstructing statistical investigations and inspections; （5） Transferring, concealing, tampering, destroying, or refusing to provide original records and vouchers, statistical ledgers, statistical investigation forms, and other relevant certificates and materials. Enterprises, institutions, or other organizations that engage in any of the behaviors listed in the preceding paragraph may be fined up to 50000 yuan; If the circumstances are serious, a fine of not less than 50000 yuan but not more than 200000 yuan shall be imposed. If an individual industrial and commercial household engages in any of the behaviors listed in the first paragraph of this article, the statistical agency of the people's government at or above the county level shall order it to rectify, give a warning, and may impose a fine of up to 10000 yuan. Article 42: If state organs, enterprises, institutions, or other organizations that are the objects of statistical investigation delay reporting statistical data, or fail to set up original records and statistical ledgers in accordance with relevant national regulations, the statistical institutions of the people's governments at or above the county level shall order them to make corrections and give warnings. Enterprises, institutions, or other organizations that engage in any of the behaviors listed in the preceding paragraph may be fined up to 10000 yuan. Individual industrial and commercial households that delay reporting statistical data shall be ordered to rectify by the statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level, given a warning, and may be fined up to 1000 yuan. Article 43: When the statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level investigate and deal with statistical violations, if they believe that the relevant state personnel should be punished according to law, they shall propose suggestions for punishment; The organ appointing or removing the State functionary or the supervisory organ shall make a decision in a timely manner according to law and notify the statistics institution of the people's government at or above the county level of the result in writing. Article 44: Individuals who are subject to statistical investigations and refuse or obstruct statistical investigations during major national census activities, or provide untrue or incomplete census data, shall be ordered to make corrections and criticized and educated by the statistical agencies of the people's governments at or above the county level. Article 45: If a person violates the provisions of this Law by using false statistical data to obtain honorary titles, material benefits, or job promotions, in addition to being held legally responsible for fabricating false statistical data or requesting others to fabricate false statistical data, the unit that made the relevant decision or its superior unit or supervisory organ shall cancel the honorary title, recover the material benefits obtained, and revoke the promoted position. Article 46: If a party is dissatisfied with the administrative penalty decision made by the statistical agency of the people's government at or above the county level, they may apply for administrative reconsideration or file an administrative lawsuit in accordance with the law. Among them, those who are dissatisfied with the administrative penalty decisions made by the investigation agencies dispatched by the National Bureau of Statistics in provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government shall apply for administrative reconsideration to the National Bureau of Statistics; If dissatisfied with the administrative penalty decision made by other investigation agencies dispatched by the National Bureau of Statistics, apply for administrative reconsideration to the investigation agency dispatched by the National Bureau of Statistics in the province, autonomous region, or municipality directly under the Central Government where the dispatched agency is located. Article 47: Those who violate the provisions of this Law and commit crimes shall be held criminally responsible in accordance with the law. [1]

Chapter 7 Supplementary Provisions Article 48: The statistical institutions of the people's governments at or above the county level referred to in this Law refer to the National Bureau of Statistics and its dispatched investigation agencies, as well as the statistical institutions of the local people's governments at or above the county level. Article 49: The management measures for folk statistical survey activities shall be formulated by the State Council. Organizations and individuals outside the People's Republic of China who need to conduct statistical survey activities within the territory of the People's Republic of China shall apply for approval in accordance with the regulations of the State Council. Those who use statistical surveys to endanger national security, harm public interests, or engage in fraudulent activities shall be held legally responsible in accordance with the law. Article 50: This Law shall come into effect on January 1, 2010. [2]